Page 64 of Weak Side

Her bare back was to me, but her hands paused on the brim of her panties as they were halfway down her hips. I dropped my gaze to the bra that was on the ground next to her feet, and this time, I actually did bite my fist.

The arch of her cheekbone came into sight as she peeked over her shoulder at me, and when our eyes met, I had to physically take a step back and remind myself that I couldn’t storm over to her and fuck her like I wanted to.

She’s my roommate. She’s my fake girlfriend. She’s my roommate. She’s my fake girlfriend.

I pulled open the door and shut out the sound of the shower as I slammed my back against the wall and bent over at the waist, breathing in and out of my nose until I put the restraints back on. “What the fuck,” I mumbled, looking up at the ceiling. “She’s not really yours, bro.”

I almost texted Aasher to come down to the locker room to be a barrier between Claire and me. Not that I wouldn’t walk away if she said no, but I had a big feeling that she was struggling just as much as I was, because when our eyes caught, just a moment ago, I swore the air had crackled around us.

Crossing the line was a bad idea. I agreed with her.

But with bad ideas came new opportunities.

30

Claire

The lookin his eye every time his gaze found me was heart-stopping. It was making it really hard to think clearly. I felt like I was slipping whenever I was alone with Theo. Between his innuendo comments, deep smirks, and casual touches to my body, I felt myself changing and falling for something that wasn’t even there.

I was still wounded and hurt, and my self-confidence was skewed from Chad. Just one look from Theo seemed to repair my self-worth, and although I denied his half-joke earlier, I wasn’t sure my answer would be the same if he were to ask me again.

I felt dizzy as I put my back to the shower doors, just in case he came in again. Although the water was only lukewarm and not my usual scorching temperature, it felt nice compared to the ice bath that I had been submerged in just moments before. I was completely shocked that Theo had noticed there was something wrong with my ankle, and the fact that he went out of his way to have it checked out for me wassogenuine. Truthfully, Theo Brooks made it painfully hard not to fall for him.

There was a knock on the door that echoed through the empty showers, and my hand slapped on the nozzle to turn it off.

“Stay where you are, and don’t turn around.”

My palm stayed put as my head snapped up. My wet hair trailed down my back as water droplets continued to pelt me from overhead. “What?”

“Coach is here. There’s nowhere for you to hide, and I’m not about to get chewed out for letting you use our ice bath and showers.”

“And you don’t think he’s going to chew you out for being in the showerswithme?! Don’t you remember how angry he was when he found out I was your roommate?” My heart began to race as I kept my spine straight underneath the stream of the shower.Oh my God, is he looking at me?I was completely naked and too afraid to look back to see what he thought of my backside. I knew it didn’t matter, but my heart and body were not on the same playing field at the moment.

“He isn’t going to know you’re in the showers with me.” My eyes widened when Theo’s breath mixed with the water against my shoulder.

“Theo, what the hell are you doing?” I asked, hyperaware of every single breath he took. His presence behind me was imperative to how I acted next.

“Hiding you,” he whispered, voice suddenly husky and strained. Heat raced down the front of my stomach and landed in the center of my legs. I sucked in a breath and told myself not to turn around, but instead of listening to that wise voice in the back of my head that was trying to shield me from mortificationandanother heartbreak, I slowly peeled around and peered into Theo’s hooded gaze.

Water cascaded off the front of his forehead at the same time his jaw flexed. I blinked before romanticizing the situation we were in, pretending that Theo Brooks, the hot hockey jock of Bexley U, actually felt something real for me that wasn’t skewed by the perception of a fake relationship.

There was nothing more than a breath of air that stood between us, and when I slowly slipped my gaze down the front of his bare chest and landed on what he was sporting, I gasped loudly and flung my attention back to him.

“Make sure you stay where you are.” Theo swallowed, and I swore his jaw grew more angular. “If Coach walks in here, which he will, he won’t see you in front of me.”

All I could manage was a nod, but there was so much I wanted to say and do, which was a scary thought because there was no way that either of us could blame our behavior on a ruse in front of campus or my ex. Theo and I were alone. Not a single person was watching us. Yet, I wanted him to grip me and tell me pretty lies because the way Theo Brooks made me feel, even while pretending, was something I craved.

“Are you okay?”

I shook the water out of my face and glanced up at his question. He wasn’t looking at me, though. All I could see was his strong, defined profile with his straight nose and hollow cheeks. “Yeah, are you?”

I was surprised he could hear me over the stream of the shower, but when his gaze cut to mine, I jumped and ended up closer to him.

“No.” The tiny word sent goosebumps flying down my spine until my toes flexed against the tiled floor.

“No?” I dropped my attention to his chest, and it was moving just as fast as mine. Raising my hand, I put it against his wet skin and quickly gasped. “Theo. It feels like you’re having a heart attack. What’s wrong?”Is he nervous that his coach is going to find me here?

“What’s wrong?” A tiny crevice appeared in between his eyebrows, and I followed the small bead of water that trailed over his nose, landing in between us. “This. This is what’s wrong!” Theo moved closer to me, and I gingerly took a step back, knowing that if he touched me, it was game over. His closed fist banged against the tile behind me, and he leaned in close, careful not to let our bodies touch. “Claire, since the first time I kissed you, I’ve had a really hard time thinking of anything but your mouth.” Theo’s admittance stole the last bit of self-control I had. “And your laugh. And…” Theo’s free hand suddenly landed on my naked waist, and I stared down at his large palm covering my torso with a stealth I wasn’t sure he knew he possessed.I’m a goner.“And this body.”

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